“It is incredibly fortunate that the victim lived. The investigation has shown that he [Stanislavs Leonovs] was willing to take money and attempt to kill someone – the sentence reflects just how serious a crime this was.”
These were the words of Detective Constable Peter Harvey, an officer from the team which investigated the shooting of a 57 year old man in Green Lane, Goodmayes last July. He was speaking just after Sanislavs Leonovs had been convicted of attempted murder after a trial at the Old Bailey lasting two weeks. Leonovs, who was just 27 years of age and gave his address as Luton Road, Chatham, was convicted last week of attempted murder and possession of a firearm. This week he was sentenced to 20 years in prison for the attempted murder and seven years’ imprisonment for the possession of a firearm. The sentences are to run concurrently.
The conviction follows from a successful investigation by detectives from the Met’s Trident and Area Crime Command. The court heard that on Wednesday, 1s July 2015, shortly before 6am, Leonovs discharged seven shots at his victim, leaving him critically injured. Fortunately the victim recovered and was eventually discharged from hospital.
The jury was told that while officers had been unable to discover a motive for the shooting, they were able to establish that £5,000 was transferred to Leonovs shortly after the shooting took place. They were also able to link Leonovs to the purchase of the vehicle used in the shooting and show that both he and the vehicle made a number of early morning trips to the victim’s address. Officers recovered a Winchester rifle from a garden close to the scene of the shooting and were able to demonstrate that CCTV footage showed a person matching Leonovs description was shown discarding the weapon.
Leonovs was traced to a car park in Chatham, Kent on 16th July 2015. He managed to evade officers and fled the scene, but the vehicle used in the shooting was found in the car park and Leonovs’s DNA was found inside the vehicle. Leonovs was subsequently arrested in Gillingham, Kent on 10th December 2015 and was charged three days later. Police searched his home and found evidence that Leonovs had fled to France following the incident in Chatham before returning to the UK.
Detective Constable Peter Harvey, welcomed the sentence, explaining, “I am pleased with the sentenced handed out to Leonovs. He is a dangerous man who has shown no remorse for his actions. Our investigation remains ongoing to find out who conspired with Leonovs and who paid him to carry out this shooting.”
•Anyone with information that could assist the investigation is asked to contact police on 020-7230 9795. Alternatively, you can call Crimestoppers, which will keep your call confidential and will not even ask your name, on 0800 555 111.
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•UPDATE: Man charged with manslaughter Lee Baker, aged 40, of Crispe House, Dovehouse Mead, Barking was charged on Sunday, 19th June with the manslaughter of 48-year Alan Dutton who was found collapsed in Barking and died in hospital on Thursday, 16th June. Baker appeared at Barkingside Magistrates’ Court on Monday, 20th June and was remanded in custody to appear on a date to be arranged.
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